Each month, the team at Switchboard Public Relations connects the dots between the trends, headlines and narratives informing the B.C. tech sector.
For May’s Connecting The Dots, the team breaks down some multimillion-dollar M&A action, explores the emissions-reducing power of new agtech, and follows up on a trailblazing 5G research partnership.
B.C. tech companies buy, sell and raise
The Short: Vancouver’s TIMIA Capital acquired Waterloo, Ont.-based Brightpath Capital, Vancouver’s Tasktop Technologies was purchased by Texas-based Planview; and Victoria’s Certn announced US$50 million in Series B funding.
The Long: The volume of Canadian mergers and acquisitions increased by 117 percent from 2020 to 2021, and as we near the halfway mark of 2022 there’s still plenty of M&A action.
TIMIA Capital, for instance, is acquiring Brightpath Capital for approximately $30.5 million, creating a combined company with pro forma assets surpassing $200 million. TIMIA uses a proprietary technology platform to democratize private credit for investors by offering a broad range of speciality private credit opportunities. These high-yield loans are delivered through two operating divisions: TIMIA Capital, which offers revenue-based investment to North American Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) businesses; and Pivot Financial, which specializes in asset-based private credit for mid-market borrowers in Canada. Brightpath specializes in arranging mortgages for Ontario- and B.C.-based clients seeking alternatives to traditional banking, especially individuals who are self-employed, experiencing credit issues, or looking at real-estate renovation or development projects.
Then there’s Tasktop, which was acquired by portfolio and work management multinational Planview one year after raising a $100 million strategic investment led by San Francisco’s Sumeru Equity Partners. Founded by Mik Kersten and Gail Murphy in 2007 and currently employing more than 200 people, Tasktop provides a platform designed to help businesses bridge the gap between software delivery and business outcomes. Already deployed across half of the Fortune 100, Tasktop reduces time to market and speeds software development.
Over on the Island, the US$50 million raise by Certn comes on the heels of a US$34.1-million funding raise in 2021, which was also led by California’s B Capital. The latest round includes BMO, Tribe, Inovia Capital, Telstra Ventures, Scribble, Moxxie Ventures, and Gaingels Covalent Ventures, and aims to fund Certn’s worldwide expansion and the hiring of 160 new employees. The company’s background check platform enables employers to make better and faster hiring decisions.
CubicFarms’ data fuels Deloitte partnership
The Short: In the wake of releasing compelling energy use and methane-emission data relating to its indoor farming technologies, Langley-based CubicFarm Systems has announced an agreement with Deloitte LLP to develop a carbon commercialization program designed to provide high-quality carbon credits to the fast-growing global market.
The Long: According to Nathan Steeghs, a Partner in Deloitte’s Sustainability & Climate Change practice, “we need to focus on tech solutions that can help close the emissions gap in getting to net-zero, and we believe in investing in solutions that are commercially viable today and technologies that have the potential to unlock significant carbon reductions.”
New research confirms that CubicFarms’ indoor growing tech fits that description:
- Dairy cows fed using the HydroGreen Grow System emit 24 percent less methane on a per unit milk output basis. Methane’s 20-year global warming potential is more than 70 times greater than that of CO2, with about a third of global methane emissions coming from livestock
- Preliminary studies of beef cattle have demonstrated approximately 48 percent lower methane emissions on a per kilogram weight gain basis
- As much as 62 percent less energy is used in a CubicFarm System module compared to results reported by other vertical farms
- The CubicFarm and HydroGreen systems further cuts GHG emissions by reducing the number of acres needed to grow food and feed crops, which in turn eliminates the need to till, fertilize, and irrigate those lands, as well as ship food and animal feed long distances
Events we are looking forward to
The Short: We pulled together a list of events in the month of June that #TeamSwitchboard will be attending and we want to see you there #IRL.
The Long: As the weather warms up, and in-person events are coming back, we are excited to head out.
A few events that we are looking forward to:
- June 2: DAO Night with Webcouv3r & Angel Forum
- June 9: The Vancouver Pre-Collision Reception
- June 15: Non-Dilutive Capital: Secure a Strong Balance Sheet in Uncertain Times
- June 20-23 in Toronto, ON: COLLISION
- June 27: Future of Transportation – Vancouver Entrepreneurs’ Forum
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